I'm looking into fulfilling a life long dream and opening my own gym, and I'm wondering if anyone out there owns one themselves. I'm particularly interested in the 24 hour franchise, mainly due to the lower start up costs than a huge gym or fitness center, and the minimal staffing needs. Any SNAP franchise owners out there? Any other gym owners that would be willing to share tips, experiences, and advice with me?
Advice from gym owners
- Thread starter trainerbob
- Start date
Good luck! A 24-hour gym. Wow! I saw one when I visited Texas. Not sure if it was a SNAP gym/not, but it was open 24 hours and I was stunned by that concept. (Where I belong right now operates 5:30a-10p and closes at 6pm on Fridays. They don't open until 1pm on Saturdays and 8am on Sundays. Their Autumn hours fluctuate so much for a month-long period that it's hard to keep to a routine.) I would join a gym like what you're looking into in a snap 
if one opened close to me.
Best of luck to you!
if one opened close to me.Best of luck to you!
No...not that I know of.
We have a few Ballys types of places in the suburbs, but they have normal gym hours. I was just thinking about this 24-hour thing this morning while I was at the gym because in the next two weeks, my gym will close (completely) for 2 days in one week and 2 days the following week (Jewish Holidays). They'll also close early on 2-3 additional days in that 2-week span. I have free access to the gym my university, so I'll use it during those times. I just like to keep to a routine and know the players.
Here's the beauty of the SNAP concept, as I see it. Anytime Fitness has a similar offering. Access to the gym is card reader controlled, so it's not even staffed much of the time.
We have other 24 hour gyms in the area, but they're huge things with lots of staffing overhead. You have to churn out memberships like mad just to pay the bills. A person can theoretically run one of these smaller, 1500 square foot or so gyms with only one part time staff person. And because of the card reader access it can be open 24x7x365 without anyone having to work holidays.
We have other 24 hour gyms in the area, but they're huge things with lots of staffing overhead. You have to churn out memberships like mad just to pay the bills. A person can theoretically run one of these smaller, 1500 square foot or so gyms with only one part time staff person. And because of the card reader access it can be open 24x7x365 without anyone having to work holidays.
It's a great concept. I was telling someone about it today at the gym and he agreed that he'd be in a gym like that at 4am, when he typically wakes up. Perfect solution for so many people.
What about parking and general building security in the night/early-morning hours? Seems that to sell the concept of a 24-hour gym, you'd need to convince people that it will be safe to enter, exit, and be in the building at odd times--like 2-4am. That would be my biggest concern.